Softball: Sixth-inning rally propels Gilbert

Tuesday

GILBERT – After five innings, not an especially large number of things went Gilbert's way on the softball diamond.

GILBERT – After five innings, not an especially large number of things went Gilbert’s way on the softball diamond.

Down a run and with four outs remaining in the game, the Tigers caught a couple breaks.

Gilbert scored four runs in the sixth inning to overtake Colfax-Mingo, 5-3, on Monday evening.

The Tigers got a two-run triple from Johanna Holck after they had already tied the game and added another run on a Livi Tibben single to turn a 2-1 deficit into a 5-2 advantage going into the final frame.

“We were on (Colfax-Mingo pitcher Amy Russell) all game,” said Gilbert coach Melissa Jones. “I felt like we were hitting her well, we just were having hard hits that were going right to somebody’s glove.”

That changed when Robyn Riley lifted a soft flare behind first base that the Tigerhawks’ second basemen couldn’t quite corrall to extend the inning after a Jacee Lenz walk.

Hannah Williams then put the ball in play and reached on an error to push the tying run across and set up Holck for go-ahead triple.

“They kept just working hard and make solid contact and eventually they started falling,” Jones said.

Clare Isenhart allowed five hits to pick up the win in the circle, though it wasn’t without some trepidation as Colfax-Mingo scored one run in the seventh and brought the go-ahead run to the plate with two outs, prompting a visit from Jones.

“I told them this is our game, we’re in charge of it right now, they just need to be calm and relax and get that last out,” Jones said.” You could see it in their eyes. They were ready to go, they knew they were in charge of this game.”

Isenhart induced a groundball to second to end the threat and the game for Gilbert, which begins a three-game road stretch Wednesday at CMB.

“It’s great to see when we have our pitching in the right spot, our defense is doing a great job and our offense comes alive,” Jones said, “because I’ve told the girls they can play like this and they can win lots of games.

“We just have to do this every night.”

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